Remember the Chevy Astro? The RWD, truck-based sort of minivan that Chevrolet offered from 1985 until 2005? Well, a few enthusiasts do, and they miss it. So much that they've created a website and a petition to try and bring it back.
The Astro, and its GMC Safari twin, were GM's first minivans. Though, they weren't all that mini. They were rear-drive, borrowing plenty of bits from the Chevrolet S-10, meaning that they could actually tow, too. The vans were dropped in 2005 because by then they were well out of date and demand was falling.
Despite that, a savior has arisen, or an attempted one, at least, with a delightfully retro site. Plus a video that reminds you of just how bad a mid-1990s car ad could be by making and showing you one of the Astro.
On top of the petition, bringbacktheastro.com has testimonials from owners and fans. Like "I really do believe that they are probably the most versatile rig ever made!"
- @yakvanadventures. And "It's definitely the overall greatest vehicle I've ever owned." - @_forrestwalker_. Who presumedly hasn't had a great breadth of good vehicle ownership.
So far, after two months, the petition has 318 signers, and it's climbing quickly, since there were just 290 when we started typing this sentence. Is that enough to convince GM to bring back the Astro? Probably not. But what are they afraid of? That practical is just too cool in an era of less-efficient space-using crossovers? Or that not even these 300-odd people would buy one? Probably that second one.
The Astro, and its GMC Safari twin, were GM's first minivans. Though, they weren't all that mini. They were rear-drive, borrowing plenty of bits from the Chevrolet S-10, meaning that they could actually tow, too. The vans were dropped in 2005 because by then they were well out of date and demand was falling.
Despite that, a savior has arisen, or an attempted one, at least, with a delightfully retro site. Plus a video that reminds you of just how bad a mid-1990s car ad could be by making and showing you one of the Astro.
On top of the petition, bringbacktheastro.com has testimonials from owners and fans. Like "I really do believe that they are probably the most versatile rig ever made!"
- @yakvanadventures. And "It's definitely the overall greatest vehicle I've ever owned." - @_forrestwalker_. Who presumedly hasn't had a great breadth of good vehicle ownership.
So far, after two months, the petition has 318 signers, and it's climbing quickly, since there were just 290 when we started typing this sentence. Is that enough to convince GM to bring back the Astro? Probably not. But what are they afraid of? That practical is just too cool in an era of less-efficient space-using crossovers? Or that not even these 300-odd people would buy one? Probably that second one.